“Tebow is just a guy with the good sense to say thanks. Instead of taking his cue, we mock his faith. 

And that says more about us, none of it good.”

The action now known as “Tebowing” has become a viral sensation and the object of ridicule — but why? FOX Sports Columnist, Jen Engel, provides a well-written argument against the mockery aimed at Gator superstar (and Broncos newbie), Tim Tebow.

Read the full article here.

*I’m a proud graduate of the University of Florida (BS ‘07) and had the immense honor of cheering on Tebow and co. at The Swamp during some of our winningest seasons. Go Gators!

According to the United Nations (via ABC News), Earth’s 7-billionth person will be welcomed to our planet tomorrow, Monday 10/31, merely 24 hours before the mark of my 27th year on earth. Calculations indicate Number 7,000,000,000 will likely be born in India, which isn’t surprising, considering the country welcomes a newborn nearly every second and is expected to surpass China’s population in 14 years.

Needless to say, the earth’s population is growing at an exponential pace. To put it in perspective: 

… in a mere decade, scientists said we’ll be preparing to welcome the 8 billionth person into the world.

Crazy, eh?

Thanks to this super neat-o calculator, courtesy of BBC News, I’ve learned that

When I was born, I was the 4,806,763,941st person alive on Earth and the 79,600,146,309th person to have lived since history began.

As we await the birth of Earth’s 7-billionth baby, give it a try: what number were you?

According to Gawker, Florida is the 12th worst state in America. Seriously? My hometown weekly paper, The Miami NewTimes, begs to differ — presenting 50 Reasons Florida Is the Best Effing State in America.

Having spent the majority of my life in the melting pot that is Miami Beach, then bleeding orange-and-blue in The Swamp for four years, and now living alongside the sugar-white beaches of Northwest Florida’s Gulf Coast for the past two years, I can vouch for almost all of them — DDD-breasted mannequins and all! 

38. We even inspired cranky drunk Ernest Hemingway.

And yes, we have mermaids.

Do you have any other awesome reasons to add to the list of things we love about The Sunshine State?

I will never forget the feeling… that state of shock that lingers for days, those images that seemed too cinematic to be real, the feeling of helplessness and fear - what’s next? -the understanding that over the span of less than three hours, our world, as we knew it, had been forever changed.

As coincidence would have it, I had stayed home from school that Tuesday morning feeling ill. My brother, in middle school at the time, had taken my symptoms as an opportunity to stay home, too. I remember hearing my mother’s gasps coming from the living room, where the TV was on full blast. As I walked in from my bedroom, still sleepy-eyed and groggy, I thought the “accident” seemed too unreal to have been an accident, and before I had an opportunity to gather what was truly happening, the words “attack,” “hijacked planes,” and “terrorism” made their way onto the screen. As the second plane struck the second tower, my mom and I hugged. She said, “I am so happy you’re here.” I couldn’t possibly imagine what it’d be like to be there, to have someone there, in that flaming debris, in midst of that terror… My friends and classmates were in second period, Honors Biology I, that morning; my best friend later called me from the classroom, where everyone was also watching the tragedy play out on live television.

My generation was marked by the horrific events of September 11, 2001, but we have not been defined - not by grief or by hatred or by loss, but rather by a determination to serve our country, to stand together, to always (always!) remember.

Since that day, countless numbers of young men and women have joined the armed forces. We have been fueled by a commitment to fight for freedom to the best of our availability. We have been the faces of a war that we don’t quite understand but that has lasted for nearly half of our young adult lives. And we will prevail as a stronger, more unified, hopefully more mature generation, marked by an understanding of good and evil, of life and loss, of patriotism and hope.

Though I had been living in the U.S. for less than 10 years at the time of the September 11 attacks, I had not felt as “American” as I did that day, when I looked at all of those flags being erected on people’s balconies and yards and when every time I have sung the Star Spangled Banner since.

“…And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?”

Today, as I get closer to celebrating my second decade as a resident of this country, as I think of all those servicemen/women whom I know and love, as I dream of one day having American children and grandchildren, and as I continue to pursue my parents’ American Dream, I know I will never forget that heart-wrenching September day. We will never forget.

How do you remember?

Americans have been voted the world’s “coolest nationality” in an international poll.
- Reuters

My native country (Argentina) is the third coolest in Latin America. Gotta love those Brazilians! :-P My maternal grandmother’s native country (España) is the coolest in Europe, followed by my father’s (and maternal grandfather’s) native country (Italia). All three made the list of the World’s 10 Coolest Nationalities, with the United States in the lead.

My current home country + my native country + my two countries of heritage… I believe this makes me one “rad” chick!

How did your countries stack up on the list? I feel really bad for the Belgians. Voters should’ve given them credit for great waffles, after all.